HUNDREDS OF KOSOVO ALBANIANS FLEE THEIR VILLAGES

( Editorial: --> 7971 ) DONJI PREKAZ, Kosovo (FRY), 8 March (Hina) - Hundreds of refugees - men, women and children - are hiding in the woods near the village of Donji Prekaz, (Drenica municipality), which was partly destroyed by the Serbian forces, foreign journalists reported on Saturday. The first foreign reporters who managed to enter the area of Drenica were met by several unarmed peasants who told them the names of at least 40 people killed in the area since March 5, France Presse reported. The refugees told reporters the Serbian forces used heavy weapons shooting randomly and burning down houses. Smoke could be seen and occasional detonations were heard in the area of Donji Prekaz on Saturday. According to the Kosovo Information Centre, some 5,000 people left the area of Donji Prekaz. The number of victims of a three-day police operation has still not been established. Foreign reporters who reached an elevation overlooking Donji Prekaz and two other villages saw groups of Serbian police officers and armoured vehicles with cannons near the arms and brick factories in Donji Prekaz. Albanian refugees believe that Albanian prisoners are being held in the brick factory, AFP reports. A local member of the Kosovo Democratic Alliance told reporters that thousands of villagers had spent the last two nights in the woods. In one of the neighbouring villages, there is a row of destroyed and burnt down houses and bullet-riddled cars. A man said his village was attacked from helicopters on Thursday night, Reuters reported. "They came at daybreak from three sides. We were told to run and we did not even have time to dress properly," said a woman from the village. Serbian sources reported that by Saturday evening at least 51 people were killed in the operations, 45 of them Albanians and 6 police officers. The total number of victims is still unknown. The Kosovo Information Centre sources in Vucitrn, Srbica, Llausa and Mitrovica, and the Albanian daily 'Bujku' on Saturday published the names of 28 victims, which is part of the total number of those killed in the police attack on Drenica. Drenica is one of the most undeveloped areas in Kosovo. Some 70 per cent of the local population live of humanitarian aid from Mother Theresa humanitarian organisation in Pristina. The Kosovo Information Centre reported that Serbian forces increased movements on the night between Friday and Saturday, estimating that the police were regrouping and bringing in enforcement. Situation is also difficult in the village of Llausa, which is under siege and where five persons were reportedly killed. Members of a local Kosovo Democratic Alliance branch in Srbica sent an appeal to the international community to stop the violence of Serbian forces, whose ultimate aim, they said, was the ethnic cleansing of Kosovo. (hina) rm 081116 MET mar 98